Chapter 1.3

With every breath, the familiar scent of fruit tickled his nose and seeped into his lungs. It was Liat’s favorite perfume, a sweet and tangy fruit fragrance.

Her brother often teased her for her childish taste, but for Alvin, it was more than just a pleasant scent—it had a powerful effect.

The thought of the handkerchief’s owner leaving a trace that entered his body through his nose and became one with him was so intoxicating that his breathing grew even more ragged.

“Haa… ngh.”

S*x education was an essential part of a noble’s upbringing. Of course, the lessons were so refined that they weren’t much help in practice.

Still, what he was doing was obvious.

Alvin, whom Liat had thought was unwell, was pleasuring himself, holding his member in his hand.

Liat, whose only exposure to such acts had been in print, was struck as if by a hammer.

“Hngh, hnn…”

Unconsciously, she swallowed as she watched the man’s hips tremble in small spasms.

Since ‘that day,’ Liat and Alvin became each other’s only opposite s*x, only friend, and everything.

It was the first time the person she thought of as her other half felt so unfamiliar.

She had always believed she knew everything about him, but when it came to her friend’s private desires, she was clueless, and her shock would not subside.

The sticky wet sounds, the chair creaking, Alvin’s desire-filled m*ans—all of it scratched at Liat’s ears, stoking a growing heat inside her.

“Hng! Haa…”

The clear liquid on his fingers turned cloudy as thick white fl*id spurted from the flushed tip, staining his dark skin.

“Haa, Liat…!”

Alvin’s back shuddered violently. His hips jerked upward, announcing the arrival of his cl*max. He cried out her name in desperation as he finished.

‘That’s my name…’

The sight of her childhood friend calling her name while releasing himself left Liat’s mind spinning.

The white fl*id dripped from the tip of the man’s member, so much that it soaked his palms and the back of his hand, then dripped onto the floor.

“Huff…”

At that low, primal sigh, Liat’s lower belly tightened. She felt her thighs tense, and a strange heat pooled between her legs.

Thump.

Startled by the odd sensation in her lower belly, she stepped back and bumped into the door, making a small noise.

Alvin, who had been catching his breath with his face buried in the desk, turned his head. His dazed, heated eyes met hers.

Their gazes collided in the air. Both of their faces were as red as freshly picked tomatoes—his from the afterglow, hers from witnessing it.

“Liat, Liat!”

The man, so flustered he couldn’t even straighten himself out, jumped to his feet. The loud scrape of the chair broke the silence between them.

“Why are you here…!”

His member, still out in the open and slick with evidence of his cl*max, was exposed. Even though he had just finished, its size was still so great it rivaled the illustrations from her s*x education classes.

When Liat’s gaze dropped—not at him, but elsewhere—Alvin, noticing something was off, followed her eyes. Where his gaze landed was none other than his own glistening lower body.

“Ah, ah! I, I can explain.”

Both his hands moved frantically. One hand hurriedly pulled up his pants, while the other reached out to her, palm open as if to say, “Don’t go.”

But this was clearly a mistake. The palm he extended toward her was still damp. The sunlight made his skin, slick with fl*id, gleam, and seeing that made Liat even more unsettled.

‘With that hand, just now…’

He had called out Liat’s name as he finished.

Anyone who wasn’t a fool could tell who he had been thinking of while touching himself. As that thought reached her, she felt the blood rush to her face.

“Well, I’ll be going now. Please, continue enjoying yourself.”

Liat, maintaining her composure as befitted a noble, gave a graceful and cultured farewell, then turned and stepped outside.

It was a swift movement, leaving Alvin no chance to stop her in his confusion.

“Liat, wait!”

As soon as both her feet left the room, Liat bolted as if his voice were a starting gun. She began running in a way no noblewoman ever should, completely flustered.

If the servants had seen her like this, they would have grabbed her and started scolding her.

But fortunately, there was no one in the hallway to point it out or stop her.

“Liat! Please!”

The man’s voice calling from behind only made her legs move faster, as if it were a stimulant. She hurried down the stairs, and though heavy footsteps pounded behind her, it was already too late.

When she reached the entrance, the servants tried to approach her, seeing how breathless she was.

“Liat!”

But startled by Alvin’s shout, they rushed upstairs instead, leaving her behind. Judging by their anxious expressions, they must have assumed Alvin was yelling because of another one of her pranks.

Liat had no time to clear up their misunderstanding. She quickly climbed into the waiting carriage and left.

“Oh dear, what just happened….”

Liat let herself be swept along by the current of time, drifting aimlessly. The journey back to her room was a blur—she couldn’t remember any of it.

In the place of those missing memories, something else had settled.

Alvin’s flushed ears, his busy hands. Even his firm lower body, which she had seen by accident.

Even as time passed, the image lingered in her mind, flickering before her eyes. Just thinking about that scene made her thighs twist and her throat go dry.

She was swimming in the remnants of that suggestive memory when a knock sounded and Delin entered.

“My Lady, Young Master Alvin is asking permission to come in…. Did you two fight again?”

Since they usually entered each other’s rooms without notice, asking permission only happened after a quarrel.

Judging by Alvin’s swollen eyes when seen from below, he must have been downcast from the young lady’s mischievous prank. Delin shot Liat a reproachful glance, as if this wasn’t the first time.

“Tell Alvin not to even think about coming into my room!”

“My Lady, it’s not good to fight. He’s waiting quietly downstairs, so at least show him your face….”

“It’s not a fight! Um, I mean, I’m sleeping right now. I’m enjoying a rare afternoon nap, so please tell him to go home today.”

Delin let out a quiet sigh at her young lady’s face, which showed no trace of sleepiness, then disappeared from Liat’s view.

‘This is crazy, crazy!’

Liat couldn’t understand how Alvin could come looking for her so confidently after what had just happened.

‘Did he have no shame?’ 

If it were her, she would have waited quietly at the mansion, hoping time would eat away at the memory until it faded.

Because the image of him pleasuring himself kept replaying in her mind, Liat found it uncomfortable to see his face.

Just recalling his ragged breaths and quivering hips made her want to scream. The ticklish heat in her lower belly only added to her frustration.

To make matters worse, her underwear, now damp and clinging to her, made her even more embarrassed, and she didn’t want to see him at all.

Feeling stifled, she threw on some clothes and headed toward the library. As she stepped outside, the guards standing by looked at her with puzzled faces.

Of course, Liat had no energy left to care about anyone else.

She hurried her steps.

* * *

“My Lady, wasn’t today supposed to be the day you visit Sir Alvin?”

Lisa, who had found Liat in the library early, approached with a puzzled expression.

“Oh my, My Lady! Did something happen?”

The young lady’s face was flushed, and sweat was pouring down as her eyes darted about.

Lisa leaned in close, then, glancing at the guards behind, lowered her voice.

“You’re curious about what happens next in the novel you read yesterday, aren’t you? I was worried it might be too much for you, but seeing you rush over like this, I’m relieved.”

‘A novel?’

She didn’t know why the topic had shifted there, but it was a convenient excuse.

She had run here wanting to consult someone about her shock, but she couldn’t exactly talk about Alvin’s private life. She’d even thought of asking her brother about a man’s psychology, but the image of Alvin being torn in two by her brother’s rage was enough to push that idea far away.

“Hehe. My lady, you’ve really grown up. I, Lisa, don’t know whether to be happy or not.”

After pretending to wipe away tears, Lisa pulled her aside, out of the guards’ sight, and handed her a book.

“This one’s even more stimulating. I hope you enjoy it, My Lady.”

Her problem wasn’t solved, but at least she now had a distraction.

Liat hugged the book to her chest and returned to her room. However, with servants coming and going so often, she had no chance to enjoy Lisa’s secret gift.

Liat could only wait for time to pass. She forced Alvin’s face out of her thoughts and went to bathe. The dampness clinging to her most private place was uncomfortable.

“Is she ill?”

“She seems odd today.”

Delin and a servant whispered as they watched Liat’s strange behavior.

Ever since she returned from Alvin’s mansion with a flushed face, the young lady’s actions had been suspicious. Alvin, who had chased after her, was turned away without even seeing her face, and then she suddenly insisted on bathing alone, sending the servants away.

It was unusual.

All the servants at the Marquisate watched her carefully, but her odd behavior didn’t stop. The always cheerful girl, who was usually considerate of those who worried for her, even sighed—proof enough that something was wrong.

“My Lady, have a peaceful night.”

After giving her usual evening greeting, the servant left the room. Liat pressed her ear to the door right after she left, waiting until the footsteps faded, then dashed to her desk and pulled out the book.

She needed something to focus on—anything to make her forget Alvin’s act.

Flip.

The lovers in the book were sharing a passionate kiss. The man’s hands settled on the woman’s body, and their actions grew more intense.

The man traced the outline of the woman’s chest and undressed her. Up to this point, it was no different from any other novel she’d read, so she turned the page with little interest.

‘Goodness! What a scandalous…!’

The union of their bodies was described in explicit detail. When the man, possessing something like a weapon, entered the woman, half the page became smeared with her shocked gasp.

It was as if her heartbeat had moved right up beside her ear.

‘Ahem, I must show respect to the author. One must always finish a book.’

The more pages she turned, the drier her lips became, and a strange heat rose within her. Her lower belly trembled, and, just like before, she felt her underwear grow wet.

The man in the book moaned as he finished, mixing the woman’s name into his cries with perfect timing.

‘Haa, Liat…!’

For some reason, the hero’s m*an took on a familiar voice, warming her ears.

The faces of herself and Alvin replaced those of the characters in her imagination.

‘Ahhh!’

Liat, who had until now watched their story as an observer, was so startled she slammed the book shut and buried her face in the pillow.